1. Technical Field
The present invention pertains to hitch carts adapted to be drawn by draft animals so as to pull and operate farm implements and the like.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
Hitch carts drawn by draft animals, typically horses, are still widely used on small farms to pull objects and farm implements and to operate farm implements from a power takeoff unit driven by the cart wheels. A typical commercially available hitch cart of this type suffers from a number of disadvantages. For example, the cart tongue tends to bend and deform at its proximal end when the draft animals make relatively sharp turns. In addition, although the mounting position of the tongue is purported to be transversely adjustable, such positional adjustment can only be effected with tools by loosening nuts from threaded bolts, removing the bolts, and then re-inserting the bolts and re-attaching the nuts when the tongue has been re-positioned on the frame. This procedure can be extremely difficult and time consuming, particularly when the bolt threads have been damaged, causing the bolt to bind and resulting in the bolt being wrenched off in the nut. Moreover, the mounting assembly for the tongue includes an L-shaped beam secured through the tongue along one leg of the beam while the other leg of the beam is slidably received in the crosspiece of a T-bar. The stem of the T-bar is secured to the cart frame by means of two laterally spaced L-brackets. The result is that the tongue axis and the T-bar stem are offset so that turning forces applied to the cart by a laterally centered tongue are not applied to the lateral center of the cart, thereby creating unequal turning torques for left and right turns. Further, the spacing between the L-brackets permits angular slack in the entire tongue mounting assembly with the result that the forward end of the tongue is capable of moving more than two feet laterally before any effect is achieved at the cart during a turn.
Another disadvantage with the aforesaid prior art commercially available hitch cart relates to the yoke bar. Typically, the tongue is either a hollow rectangular metal tube or solid wooden shaft having aligned through holes at its distal end. In the wooden tongue a threaded eye bolt extends through a hole and is threadedly secured by a nut, or the like. The yoke is connected to the eye bolt and, to change the yoke position on the tongue, the eye bolt must be removed with tools and then placed through another hole. In the case of the hollow metal tongue, a chain has one end secured to the bolt inside the tongue and extends out of the tongue through a ring that encircles and is slidable along the tongue. The yoke bar is attached to the ring so that the position of the yoke bar along the tongue changes as the ring slides along the tongue. A major problem with these arrangements is that if the harness is adjusted incorrectly or breaks, the ring readily slides over the distal end of the tongue, thereby totally disengaging the yoke assembly from the tongue and creating a dangerous condition.
Another problem associated with the aforementioned prior art hitch carts relates to the three point hitch assembly at the rear of the cart and, particularly, to the limited transverse angular motion permissible between the hitch assembly and the towed farm implement. Specifically, the sidelinks of the hitch assembly are secured to the cart by means of a turnbuckle, or the like, providing for rotation only about a horizontal axis. Rotation about a second axis perpendicular to the horizontal axis, as is needed when adjusting a towed implement laterally, is provided only by slack in the turnbuckle joint and, as this slack is limited, the joint components tend to bend and deform during sharp turns during prolonged lateral offset of the implement.
Finally, the aforesaid prior art hitch cart utilizes a ground driven power takeoff assembly arranged such that a differential cam must be aligned by hand, often requiring the use of a crowbar to turn the cam, or having the horses to take a step backward while the teamster is off the cart. Once the cams are aligned they must be slid together, a procedure that can be difficult in cold weather when lubricating grease is extremely viscous. After the cams are placed together, the teamster must tighten a thumb screw, the latter often becoming loose during normal operation in the power takeoff unit. This procedure for engaging the power takeoff is quite cumbersome. Moreover, considering that the teamster is required to be on the ground adjusting the differential cams while the horses are uncontrolled, the technique is somewhat less than safe.